You’ve got this — really

gas burner on stove

I had forgotten.

I sat on the floor New Years Day and screamed because I couldn’t figure out how I was going to lift the stove and, at the same time, shove my hand between the frig and the stove and replace the piece of wood under the back foot of the stove to level it.

I can’t do it, I lamented.

I just can’t do it. I can’t do this by myself.

And then, it wasn’t just the stove anymore; it was everything — running the kids everywhere and dealing with the inches of water in the basement each time it rains and tackling the mysterious stuff oozing through the chimney and fixing the flat tire on my car.

I just can’t do it anymore.

sad woman crying in dark room

I had forgotten, forgotten all those times I had said those very words the week before, the month before, the year before, when I thought I just couldn’t anymore — and did it anyway.

“A year from now, when you look back at today, you'll see that the problem you're so concerned with right now was another valuable lesson waiting to be learned.” — Quick Inspirations

Maybe it wasn’t easy, but you’ve met tough challenges before and come out better for it.

That thing which hurts so much today won’t hurt forever. In time and with time, you’ll conquer the problem; you’ll fix what needs fixing, deal with what needs dealing, heal what needs healing.

No it isn’t fair.

I shouldn’t have to live in a house with mysterious ooze, but that’s life, my life, anyway, right now.

Maybe your ooze is in the form of poor finances, or difficult family situations, or uncontrollable loneliness. It isn’t fair, but you must not let it overwhelm you.

older woman drying her eyes with a tissue after crying

You must not sit on the floor and cry.

Little by little, it will get better and better.

You’ll look back and see that what you didn’t think you could do one more time, you did anyway.

And, then you did it again and along the way, learned something new about yourself.

And that’s what makes us better.

That’s what makes us alive.

After fretting over the sorry state of my life for a few more moments, I lifted the back of the stove, then stuck my leg alongside the refrigerator and slid the wood level under the stove with my foot.

“You have what it takes to move yourself forward around any obstacle.” — Quick Inspirations

Don’t let anything stop you, not even a wobbly stove.

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In short supply of kindness